A princess during wartime, 1945 – HRH Princess Elizabeth (center) undergoing instruction at the Auxiliary Territorial Service training centre in April 1945. Courtesy Imperial War Museum

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Princess turned mechanic? – Auxiliary Territorial Service: Princess Elizabeth, a 2nd Subaltern in the ATS, wearing overalls and standing in front of an L-plated truck. In the background is a medical lorry. Courtesy Imperial War Museum

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Elizabeth marries Philip of Greece, 1947 – Princess Elizabeth and new husband, Prince Philip of Greece, pose for a royal photographer on their wedding day, 20 November 1947. By all accounts Prince Philip had won the future queen's heart by the age of 13.

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Canada state visit, 1951 – Princess Elizabeth enjoys a square dance held in the honor of the royal couple who were in Canada on a state visit in 1951.

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Night out on the town, 1962 – A relaxed evening at the theater: The Queen Mother and Queen Elizabeth II arrive at Windsor's Theatre Royal for a performance of George Bernard Shaw's "You Never Can Tell" on February 23, 1962.

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Queen Elizabeth with her children – From the Royal Collection -- the queen sits for a photograph with a young Prince Charles and a very blonde Princess Anne.

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Silver Jubilee, 1977 – An official photograph taken of Queen Elizabeth in 1977 -- the year of her silver jubilee.

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Eldest child Charles weds, 1981 – The queen's eldest child, Charles, Prince of Wales, bows while his new bride, Princess Diana, curtsies to the British sovereign as they leave St Paul's Cathedral, on July 29, 1981.

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Annus Horribilis, 1992 – The year 1992 was a bad one for the royal family. In addition to the three royal marriage breakdowns, a fire wreaks havoc in Windsor Castle causing major structural damage. The queen would later describe this year as "annus horribilis."

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Royal family popularity drops, 1997 – Criticism of the monarchy peaked in 1997 following the death of Princess Diana in Paris. The royal family was accused of being remote and out of touch with the grief-stricken public. However, after several days of silence, the queen returned to London, speaking to mourners and admitted there were lessons to be learnt from Diana's life.

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A more accessible royal family, 2006 - present – Since the death of Diana, the queen's popularity has enjoyed a revival as she continues to preside over what appears to be a softer, more accessible modern royal family. Here, she attends her grandson Prince Harry's graduation from the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, southern England in 2006.

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Story highlights

Queen Elizabeth II marks her 60th year as queen this year

The celebrations culminate with festivities June 2-5

Check out some of the numbers behind her decades-long reign

It's been 60 years since Queen Elizabeth II became monarch of the UK, and she's marking her Diamond Jubilee year with a series of parties, pageants and even 1,000 boats sailing up the River Thames.

On this anniversary year of her coronation, check out the numbers behind the queen's reign:

Time

60 years, four months -- The length of Queen Elizabeth II's reign as of June 6, 2012, making her the second-longest reigning monarch.

63 years, seven months, two days -- The length of the reign of Queen Victoria, from 1837 to 1901.

Crown Jewels sparkle in new exhibition – The Imperial Crown of India was made for King George V's appearance at the Delhi Durbar in 1911. It contains more than 6,000 diamonds and other precious stones, and is the only crown allowed to leave the country -- but it has only been worn once.

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Photos:Crown Jewels sparkle in major new exhibition

Crown Jewels sparkle in new exhibition – The Imperial State Crown is worn by the monarch at the end of the coronation ceremony, and at formal occasions including the annual opening of Parliament. The current version was made in 1937, and is set with some of the most famous stones in the collection, including the Cullinane II, or Second Star of Africa diamond, and the Black Prince's Ruby. The pearls suspended from its arches are said to have been Queen Elizabeth I's earrings.

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Photos:Crown Jewels sparkle in major new exhibition

Crown Jewels sparkle in new exhibition – Queen Alexandra's Crown was designed with eight arches, a style typical of her native Denmark. It was originally set with the Koh-i-Nur diamond, which is now in the Queen Mother's Crown -- today it is set with paste stones.

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Photos:Crown Jewels sparkle in major new exhibition

Crown Jewels sparkle in new exhibition – The Sovereign's Sceptre with Dove dates back to 1661; the bird symbolizes the Holy Spirit.

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Photos:Crown Jewels sparkle in major new exhibition

Crown Jewels sparkle in new exhibition – The annointing of the new monarch, using holy oil, is one of the first parts of the Coronation ceremony. The Coronation Spoon is the oldest of the Crown Jewels -- it survived the Civil War, and dates back to the 12th century.

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Photos:Crown Jewels sparkle in major new exhibition

Crown Jewels sparkle in new exhibition – The Crown Jewels collection also contains items created for banquets. This enormous gold salt cellar, in the shape of a castle, was presented to King Charles II after the Civil War by the citizens of Exeter.

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Photos:Crown Jewels sparkle in major new exhibition

Crown Jewels sparkle in new exhibition – British monarchs are symbolically "married" to the country during their coronation. This coronation ring was made for Queen Victoria, as the traditional one was too large. However, this version was too small, and became stuck on her finger.

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Photos:Crown Jewels sparkle in major new exhibition

Crown Jewels sparkle in new exhibition – This tiny crown -- which stands less than 10cm tall -- was made for Queen Victoria after the death of her husband, Prince Albert, in 1861; it was designed to be worn over her widow's veil.